Raising Gavroche
by TheBeatingOfTheDrums
Summary: Little Gavroche was kicked out of the house by Thenardier. What happens when the Courfeyrac finds him and introduces him to his friends? How will they raise this five-year-old child to be one of them?
1. Chapter 1

"Get out of the house!" Yelled Thenardier, as drunk as ever. "Don't you come back, ya little bastard!"

Little Gavroche, only five years old, tripped out the door and face planted into the cold, bitter snow. He heard the door of the inn slam shut. What was to become of Gavroche? Inspector Javert would be there soon to check for any beggars on the streets.

All the little boy did was tell Thenardier that he wished that he did not cheat his guests out of their money and possessions. This angered the greedy man and his wife. A fight broke out between the young boy and his parents. The next thing he knew was that he was on the streets in the cold.

Where was his older sister, Eponine? Surely she would keep him safe from their parents. Oh, that's right…she was out with a man she had recently met. So, she would not be returning until later on that night.

Gavroche stood up, wrapped his arms around his chest, and began trudging through the snow. The wind was violent that night, and visibility was low. The five year old could barely see or hear; but then he could. He heard the clicking of horse shoes against the roads.

"Javert!" He said to himself.

The boy ran as fast as he could to a nearby alley. It was a struggle for the feeble boy to run over to his desired destination because of the howling winds and the painful cold. Gavroche made it to the alley and he behind a barrel. The horses with policemen on them came into view. Gavroche ducked so they would not see him. He waited for a few moments until he looked up again. They were gone.

A pair of hands grabbed Gavroche by the shoulders and began to drag him away. "Let me go!" He screamed, almost beginning to cry.

One of the hands covered his mouth. The police had found him! If Javert was as really as bad as everyone said he was, Gavroche would be one of the youngest people to ever have a heart attack. His feet dragged in the snow as he was carried away. A building sign soon came into view. _ABC Cafe_. He had heard of this place before. It was a rival bar with his father's inn.

Gavroche soon felt his arms begin to warm up from the cold. They were inside the Cafe. The small boy was placed on a couch nearby a fire. He looked up in front of him. He was young, but not like Gavroche. Maybe he was about 19 or 20…his curly hair had the same dark brown tone as his eyes did.

"Who are you?" Gavroche asked.

The boy stared at him for a moment. "I'm Courfeyrac." He said.

"Are you a policeman?"

"No, I'm just a student." He said. "You were about to get caught by the Inspector, so I took you here, where you would be safe."

Gavroche simply stared at him. "Why?"

Courfeyrac shrugged. "Well, you're not but five or six years old, yes?"

"Yes…"

"You can't die tonight in the cold then. You have yet to experience the world around you. Now why were you wandering about in that kind of weather?"

Gavroche sighed. "My papa threw me out into the streets."

"Who is your papa?" Courfeyrac slid off his red jacket and wrapped it around the trembling boy.

"Thenardier."

"He's the owner of that inn down the street?"

Gavroche nodded, and then he smiled with Courfeyrac chuckled. "That's the inn where Grantaire got stripped of everything he had brought with him just to have a simple drink!"

The boy nodded. "That's why my papa made me leave; because I wanted him to stop taking other people's things."

Courfeyrac looked to the boy with a smile on his face. "You're a good boy. What is your name?"

"Gavroche."

"Well, then, Gavroche, we need to get you to bed. I'll take you to the house where my friends and I live. You will also live there, and I will raise you to be one of us."

"Are you going to throw me out?" Gavroche asked with once alarmed eyes and now sleepy ones.

Courfeyrac shook his head. "Never, Gavroche. You're one of us now. A fighter you will be, and a strong one at that."

Gavroche nodded and soon fell asleep in Courfeyrac's arms. He took the boy to the house where he and his friends lived and placed the sleeping child in his own bed. Sleeping on the ground would not be so bad.

One thought haunted his mind though: What would Enjolras think?


	2. Chapter 2

The sun rose early in the morning. Gavroche was still sound asleep when Courfeyrac awoke. He popped the kinks in his back that had been caused from sleeping on the ground. He sat and wondered for a moment why he was even on the ground. Then he remembered Gavroche, the boy he found wandering in the life-threatening weather.

Courfeyrac stood up and stretched before walking down the stairs to the floor where his friends were. Only two or three people where up: Enjolras, Joly, and Grantaire. Enjolras looked up to Courfeyrac as he walked over to the small group.

"Good morning, Courfeyrac." Enjolras said with a face of suspicion.

"Good morning." He replied, trying not to act obvious.

"Why were you out so late, Courf?" Grantaire asked, already having a drink.

Really? At this hour? Courfeyrac thought before answering, "I had forgotten something at the Cafe."

"It doesn't take one that long to travel from here to the ABC Cafe." Joly pointed out.

"So, what got you distracted?" Enjolras questioned.

Courfeyrac shrugged. "There was a boy out in the cold, freezing to death. Javert was about to catch him. I saw him on my way to the Cafe and took him there with me."

"Where is the boy now?"

Courfeyrac hesitated for a bit before finally answering, "Upstairs."

"You kidnapped a child?!" Cried Joly.

The young student shook his head, "No! No, I didn't. His parents threw him out on the streets. The Thenardier's!"

"Thenardier! That retched old man!" Grantaire exclaimed.

Enjolras was calm about the situation. "What are you planning to do with the boy?" He asked.

Courfeyrac looked to the blonde haired 'leader' of his group of friends. "Well, I decided that I would raise him." He simply stated.

"Raise a child? You've got to be joking." Joly said.

He shook his head. "But I'm not. This boy will be one of us. He is going to fight for our cause, Enjolras. If I raise him, I will teach him."

"You're not but twenty years old, Courfeyrac. How will you raise a child?" Enjolras added.

"I wi-"

Courfeyrac was cut off when he saw Gavroche stumbling into the room they were in. His matted blond hair was going in all different directions, and his face was pale and thin. Enjolras, Grantaire, and Joly all stared at the boy. Gavroche absentmindedly walked over to Courfeyrac and leaned against him as he was still half asleep.

"Good morning, Gavroche." Courfeyrac said before picking the child up in his arms. "Did you sleep well?"

Gavroche made the slightest nod. Enjolras stood up and walked over to Courfeyrac. "I think he'll be a perfect fighter." He said.

"He would." Courfeyrac agreed.

Courfeyrac made breakfast for him and Gavroche. There was much inside Courfeyrac that was making him feel new. Gavroche was an extremely uneducated child who was also almost starved to death. Since Gavroche was only five, Courfeyrac felt that he was almost a fatherly figure to him, yet he did not want to ruin a friendship that was about to dawn.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who is supporting me in this fanfic. It's my first, so it means a lot 3 Who ever is the 20th review (who is positive) will get to request a one shot! **

(Four years later)

It was not but twelve in the afternoon, and it was pitch black dark outside. A violent storm was over the home of Courfeyrac, Gavroche, and a new roommate named Marius Pontmercy. There was much commotion going on outside as the beggars tried to hide for shelter. Gavroche was sitting at the window of his room, thinking about the recent events that had occured in the last week.

First, Enjolras had gotten news that General La'Marque was close to dying. When he died, the Friends of the ABC were going to sabotage his funeral and begin the fight. That's what Gavroche was itching for. His heart was yearning to fight more and more by the day.

Two days ago Gavroche and Courfeyrac had a huge fight. Sure, they had fights before, but not like this one. Courfeyrac had caught Gavroche out after dark and was almost caught by Javert. This scared Courfeyrac to death. He loved Gavroche more than anything and would never be able to live with himself if something happened to the boy. The fight started off calm and it increased rapidly to a rough quarrel. Apologies had not been exchanged yet. Gavroche thought that Courfeyrac, who was basically his new father, had not loved him as much as he thought. He was having thoughts of suicide, and then began wondering if they even needed him in the overthrow.

This morning Gavroche had a small chat with Marius, and the handsome young man said that Courfeyrac had been furious, but was not sure where he currently stood. This hurt Gavroche beyond belief.

Gavroche had a knapsack on the ground next to him. He was ready to leave his home again. With one last look around the room Courfeyrac had set up for him, he left. Out in the treacherous weather he went. Rain was pouring down in sheets and pricked Gavroche's skin as he walked. Thunder clapped overhead and lightning lit up the atmosphere when it struck. The boy trudged through the mud, almost getting his feet caught in the process of walking.

He suddenly heard the clicking of horse's hooves against the brick road nearby. Gavroche gasped and quickly began running away. Was it Javert? Would he take him away if he was found? The first question was answered quickly. It was not Javert, but a runaway horse. The horse was going crazy from being loose out in the storm. It charged at Gavroche and knocked him off his feet. The horse then stomped on him as it galloped away quickly. The boy lay on the ground unconscious.


	4. Chapter 4

"Look, I think he's waking up," said Combeferre as he placed a bottle of medicine on the table next to the bed.

Gavroche's eyes fluttered open. There was a major strike of pain in his head. He could barely see what was ahead of him. It took a moment or two for his vision to clear up. He saw Enjolras sitting on a stool next to the bed, and Grantaire was next to him with a bottle of wine in his hands. Well, what was new with that? He then felt water dropping on his arm that hung off the bed. It was not water, but tears; and those tears belonged to Courfeyrac. He was on his knees and holding Gavroche's tiny hand. When their eyes met, Courfeyrac burst into more tears and embraced the child tightly.

"Oh, Gavroche! I thought you were dead! Combeferre could not find a pulse for the longest time. I'm so sorry I yelled at you earlier, Gavroche. I didn't mean to hurt you. I love you more than anything. I love you…" Courfeyrac sobbed.

Gavroche watched his guardian cry over him. He never realized until that moment how much Courfeyrac cared for him. Enjolras, Grantaire, and Combeferre stepped out of the room to leave the two alone.

"I'm sorry, Courfeyrac. It's 'cause I'm a stupid boy. I ran away in a storm. It was a stupid thing to do." He said.

Courfeyrac shook his head and smiled slightly. He sat on the bed and pulled Gavroche into his arms. "It is my fault. I overreacted when you were out late and never apologized. I am so sorry. I just got so scared that you might have been arrested for being out after curfew. I would never be able to live with myself if something happened to you." He said.

"It's okay. I am sorry also. I didn't mean to scare you, Papa…" He said.

Courfeyrac smiled and placed a kiss on Gavroche's forehead. Recently Gavroche began to call him 'Papa' or 'Daddy', which warmed his heart. It made Courfeyrac feel new again just as he had when he first took Gavroche in his care. He wanted to adopt the child after they fought. He wanted to take him to see the world. He had the money now. The only thing that was in the away of that was the fighting, but he and Gavroche both wanted to fight. So, it was decided. When the war ceased, they would be off on their adventures together.

"Papa?" Gavroche soon said.

"Yes?" Courfeyrac answered.

"Will we die?"

"In the fight?"

"Yes."

Courfeyrac brushed a few stands of blonde hair away from the nine year old's eyes. "It is possible. If we die, we die together. If we make it out, we go on an adventure. I will take you to places you've never seen, and we will be together." He said.

"Forever?" Gavroche asked.

"Forever."


	5. Chapter 5

_Little people know, when little people fight_

_We may look easy pickings, but we've got some bite._

Courfeyrac saw Joly lean over the top of the barricade with an outstretched arm. _What the devil is he doing?_ He wondered as he climbed the barricade to see what was going on.

_So never kick a dog because it's just a pup!_

A loud gunshot alarmed Courfeyrac. He scurried up to the top of the barricade. There was a voice singing, such a familiar voice. Who could it be? He turned around to search for Gavroche, but he was no where to be found. Was he what the boys where yelling at?

_We'll fight like twenty armies, and we won't give up!_

Courfeyrac reached the top of the barricade. Joly saw him and yelled at the students. "Grab Courfeyrac!" He yelled. Courfeyrac saw his little Gavroche at the front of the barricade with tens of soldiers pointing their loaded guns at him. A second of seeing his soon-to-be son and he began to jerk away from the grasp of young men of who he didn't really care of who they were.

"Gavroche! Gavroche, what are you doing?!" He yelled.

"Someone pull him pack!" Combeferre yelled as he saw one of Courfeyrac's arms break free.

"You dirty bastard!" Courfeyrac yelled, not sure who he was directing it to. He began to run climb down the barricade, aching to meet his Gavroche before it was too late.

_So you better run for cover when the pup…_

Courfeyrac managed to get to the bottom of the barricade. He sprinted over to the column that was the first step into no-man's-land. He saw Gavroche reach for another bag of dry powder. He was struggling. He was injured.

_Grows…_

A sickening gunshot and a thud could've killed the boys at the barricade if they wanted it to. Courfeyrac sprinted out to the boy and raced back to safety. He fell to his knees and sobbed. He held his hand over the boy's chest and then his neck. There was no heartbeat or pulse.

"No! Gavroche! My boy!" He cried. Tears splattered onto the dead boy's face. Combeferre was soon at his side shedding tears as well.

"We've got to put him away for now." He said calmly.

Courfeyrac stood up, still cradling the lifeless boy in his arms. "No!" He yelled. "This is my son. I'll do what I want with him!" He walked over to the tavern where Inspector Javert had been once held captive until the volunteer, Valjean, had killed him.

He placed the boy on the ground, for there were no more tables. He was down on his knees, holding the boy's hand. "I've failed you Gavroche. I should've never let you out of my sight. So, now, I'm going out to fight. I promise that it will be my last battle. I will be with you after this, my son. We will be together forever. I promise." He said, ending his vow with a kiss on the boy's forehead.

THE END

**Okay, so I'm doing an alternate ending for this one. It will be up soon. Thanks for all of the reviews!**


	6. Alternate Ending

_Little people know, when little people fight_

_We may look easy pickings, but we've got some bite._

Courfeyrac saw Joly lean over the top of the barricade with an outstretched arm. _What the devil is he doing?_ He wondered as he climbed the barricade to see what was going on.

_So never kick a dog because it's just a pup!_

A loud gunshot alarmed Courfeyrac. He scurried up to the top of the barricade. There was a voice singing, such a familiar voice. Who could it be? He turned around to search for Gavroche, but he was no where to be found. Was he what the boys where yelling at?

_We'll fight like twenty armies, and we won't give up!_

Courfeyrac reached the top of the barricade. Joly saw him and yelled at the students. "Grab Courfeyrac!" He yelled. Courfeyrac saw his little Gavroche at the front of the barricade with tens of soldiers pointing their loaded guns at him. A second of seeing his soon-to-be son and he began to jerk away from the grasp of young men of who he didn't really care of who they were.

"Gavroche! Gavroche, what are you doing?!" He yelled.

"Someone pull him pack!" Combeferre yelled as he saw one of Courfeyrac's arms break free.

"You dirty bastard!" Courfeyrac yelled, not sure who he was directing it to. He began to run climb down the barricade, aching to meet his Gavroche before it was too late.

_So you better run for cover when the pup…_

Courfeyrac managed to get to the bottom of the barricade. He sprinted over to the column that was the first step into no-man's-land. He saw Gavroche reach for another bag of dry powder. He was struggling. He was injured.

_Grows…_

A sickening gunshot and a thud could've killed the boys at the barricade if they wanted it to. Courfeyrac sprinted out to the boy and raced back to safety. He fell to his knees and sobbed. He held his hand over the boy's chest and then his neck. They were too shaky to feel for anything. "Combeferre!" He yelled. "I need your help!"

His friend raced over to his side. Courfeyrac didn't have to say anything for Combeferre to know what to do. His hand lied against Gavroche's chest and stayed like that for ten seconds. "He has a heartbeat, but it's thready. Get Joly to get the bullets out." He said.

Courfeyrac stood up, with the child still in his embrace, and he searched for Joly. He was clearing the pipes of one of the guns.

"Joly, please, I need your help. Please save my boy." He muttered.

Joly immediately tossed down the gun and sprinted over to the tavern. Courfeyrac followed.

"Ok, place him on the ground." The student of medicine said as he pulled out a box with medical supplies in it.

Courfeyrac immediately obeyed. He placed his beloved child on the ground and waited for further instruction. "Okay, he is unconscious right now, which is very beneficial to us." He said as he began to pull the bullet out of his chest.

It did not take long for Joly to treat that wound, but the next one was a bit more tough. Gavroche had woken. This was a huge relief to both men, but now it was a struggle because he was screaming in agony.

"Papa!" Was the first thing he yelled.

Courfeyrac placed one hand on Gavroche's pale cheek. "It's okay, my boy, Joly is helping you." He said.

"It hurts!" He screamed.

"I know it does, but you have to be calm or you might die."

Joly tried to increase the speed of the procedure. In less than five minutes, the wound in the boy's shoulder was treated. Gavroche had tears sliding down his face. That was one of the only times Courfeyrac had seen the strong, independent boy cry.

"You did so well." Courfeyrac whispered to him.

Joly put the medical supplies back from where it had been originally stored. Courfeyrac stood up and hugged his friend. There were no words said besides a simple, "Thank you."

Joly smiled and nodded. "Just make sure he stays hydrated and that he doesn't move around much. He should be fine." He said before walking out.

Courfeyrac knelt down next to the boy. "We're getting out of here before you get hurt again." He said.

He lifted the boy into his arms again and ran out of the cafe. He was deserting his friends. He felt like he was betraying them. He couldn't fight for what his heart longed for; but his precious boy was more than any of that. So, they began to run.

There was a house that Courfeyrac knew of that had been abandoned for years and was far away from the barricade. They stayed there for the night. The next morning, when Gavroche woke up, he saw Courfeyrac sitting on the edge of the bed.

"'ow do ya do, Courf?" He asked with a cheeky smile on his face. It was the same smile Courfeyrac had seen time and time again.

The young man smiled and shook his head. "I don't think you should call me 'Courf' or 'Courfeyrac' anymore." He said.

"Why not?"

Courfeyrac knelt down in front of the boy where they were face to face. He pulled out some papers and held them up so Gavroche could read them.

"Because I'm your papa now." He said.

Gavroche grinned and jumped out of bed to tackle Courfeyrac in a hug. "I love you!" He exclaimed with a voice Courfeyrac had never heard before.

"I love you more!" Courfeyrac said, gently holding his boy so he would not hurt him.

OFFICIAL THE END


End file.
